A Look Into JAY-Z and Kanye West's Complicated Relationship
Although they have worked together on some of the most impactful projects, the two have had a shaky history over recent years.
Despite their 2011 hit joint album Watch The Throne, JAY-Z and Kanye West have had a questionable history over the past few years. The most recent occurrence of this was a leaked video of Ye threatening to kick JAY-Z off of his album Donda, which was released back in 2021.
One of the scenes of the nearly five minute mini-documentary is where Ye is seen on a phone call, threatening to take anyone who does not attend the album listening party off of the album.
“Everybody that’s not here, I’m taking their verses off.” "I’m taking JAY-Z verse, I’m taking — if there’s anybody not here on the porch with me, they’re not on this version.”
From Ye producing JAY-Z’s songs in the early 2000s, to creating one of the most popular joint albums of the 2010s, the two famed artists have had a long history with each other. However, they have had their fair share of controversies and arguments over recent years.
One of the most notable instances of this is from back in 2017 when Hov was interviewed on TIDAL’s Rap Radar Podcast, where he discussed his beef with Kanye West, fights with Solange, and drama with his wife Beyonce.
JAY doesn't seem reluctant to talk about anything. Here are some highlights.
When speaking about his issues with Kanye West, which got inflamed when 'Ye ranted about Hov at a concert, JAY said:
What really hurt me was, you can't bring my wife and my kids into it...Like, Kanye is my little brother. Hes talked about me a hundred times. He even made a song called Big Brother. We've gotten past bigger issues. But you brought my family into it, now its a problem...You know its a problem because me and him would have been talked about it, been resolved our issues. And he knows crossed the line. He knows. And I know he knows. Cause we've never let this much space go between one of our disagreements and we've had many. That's part of who we are.
JAY also talked about the diss on "Kill JAY-Z." The rapper said he wasn't dissing 'Ye, but, rather, he was talking about himself, and he was analyzing his reaction to getting called out by Kanye:
It's not about a Kanye diss...I'm talking about me. When I say, You dropped out of school/You lost your principals, I'm not talking about Kanye. I'm talking about me. The whole thing.
Speaking on the infamous Solange elevator video, JAY brushed it off, calling Solange his "sister" and saying We’ve had one disagreement ever. Before and after, we've been cool.
When asked if that incident created three great albums, he said:
"I think we went into the elevator as great artists...I've always loved Solange's music; I thought she was slept on until this last album I think B made an incredible album before, a hundred of them."
Jay didn't just talk about gossip. He went real in-depth in how he created the 4:44 album, saying the process really started on January 3rd with him recording "Kill JAY-Z" and"The Story of O.J." JAY mentioned that the reason why he got co-production credits on a majority of the songs is he was the one bringing sample ideas to executive producer No I.D.
Editor's Note: This article was originally published in 2017 and has been updated for comprehensiveness